. A history of British mammals . Mammals; Bats; Insectivores (Mammals); Rodents. 6 INTRODUCTION unjustly forgotten Pterygistes, Pipistrellus, and Myotis. Yet so great has been, until recently, the general ignorance of the mammalian literature of the past, that it was left to Dr Andersen in 1908 to show that the Noctule and its congeners must be assigned to the genus Nyctalus hitherto associated with the fruit bats. Thus Nyctalus replaces Pterygistes with almost confusing celerity. The changes effected, although in themselves sufficiently violent and for a time inconvenient, are likely to be as
. A history of British mammals . Mammals; Bats; Insectivores (Mammals); Rodents. 6 INTRODUCTION unjustly forgotten Pterygistes, Pipistrellus, and Myotis. Yet so great has been, until recently, the general ignorance of the mammalian literature of the past, that it was left to Dr Andersen in 1908 to show that the Noctule and its congeners must be assigned to the genus Nyctalus hitherto associated with the fruit bats. Thus Nyctalus replaces Pterygistes with almost confusing celerity. The changes effected, although in themselves sufficiently violent and for a time inconvenient, are likely to be as permanent as any other system of nomenclature, and have now been, with exceptions as to details, accepted by the majority of systematic zoologists. We thus find the vespertilionid bats apportioned to six genera, viz. :—Nyctalus with two species ; Pipistrellus with one ; Vespertilio with one ; Myotis with four ; Barbastella with one; and Plecotus with one. The RhinolophidcB, with one genus {Rhinolophus) and two species, remain as before. The present aspect of our study cannot but at first sight appear pedantic; and the writer would be fortunate who could avoid it altogether. But there is no excuse for neglecting details, even of nomenclature, and each change may be welcomed as one step more toward such finality as is possible to human institutions. Structure:—For a proper appreciation of the specific and generic characters of bats, a thorough acquaintance with the form of their ears and wings and the shape and number of their teeth is necessary. In acquiring this, the diagram (Fig. i) will be found useful. In all British bats except the Rhinolo- phidcB there springs from the inner or anterior margin of the ear a process called the tragus ; it has the appearance of a second or inner Fig. I.—Diagram OF A q.,- a* ^i, u c ji. Bat's Ear. ^^^' ^^ '"^ h^.^^ of the Outer or opposite a,tragus; margin, and especially conspicuous in the ^, antitragus; RhinolopMdcB, arises a lob
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Keywords: ., bookcentury1900, bookdecade1910, booksubjectmammals, bookyear1910
